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He has left his post as technical consultant with Italy's Under 21s to become the 12th manager in West Ham's colourful history, a chance to manage in the Barclays Premier League, which now has just eight English managers, and to pit his wits against the best. Sir Alex Ferguson, Arsene Wenger, Luiz Felipe Scolari.

Suddenly he is their equal, even if today he still awaits Premier League clearance because he does not hold the UEFA Pro Licence coaching qualification.

'Football is a joy and the best part is to enjoy what you are doing,' said Zola. 'They have to trust that what you are doing is for their benefit and that is what I'm going to try to do.

'I have been in football 20 years, so I know what I'm talking about. I will give something to this club. Whether it will be enough I don't know, but I trust my knowledge of the game.

'Once the players realise that, their performances will get better and better and the crowd will see the best of them.'

Ah, the crowd, the 10,000 who were baying for Alan Curbishley's blood when the team were 1-0 down against Macclesfield in the Carling Cup and then dancing jigs of joy down Green Street when he could take no more.

They love attacking play, yearning for the years Alan Devonshire danced down the wing or dusting off the memories of Tony Cottee and Frank McAvennie nearly shooting them to the title.

Zola promised the same, after joking he will sacrifice his instincts by playing '10 men at the back'.

That was another light-hearted moment, but he has already familiarised himself with some of the characters in the dressing room. It is no hiding place, not with players such as Craig Bellamy, Lucas Neill, Lee Bowyer and Kieron Dyer creaming off the best part of £1m a month in salaries between them.

Hero: Zola was voted Chelsea's greatest player

Money meant nothing to Zola when he was dazzling his way past defenders during 312 appearances for Chelsea, but the Premier League has moved on significantly since he left in 2003.

Having helped Chelsea squeeze Liverpool out of a place in the Champions League, he left for Cagliari, his hometown club, days before Roman Abramovich dumped his bagfuls of cash at Stamford Bridge.

They offered to keep Zola, but his word was his bond and he helped Cagliari to promotion from Serie B.

This honourable man shows no sign of regret, taking a year off after he quit at the grand old age of 39 and practising his golf swing in the meantime.

The days of taking £50 a hole off John Terry are gone ('I'm ready if someone wants me to take their money, though') and his time will now be consumed with contracts, transfers and tactics.

'I want to look at the team first and then consider what I can do to improve the situation,' he added. 'We are a team, Gianluca Nani (the technical director) is part of that and once we have had time we will be able to make plans and that means whether to buy or sell.

'The club is ambitious and we want to improve on last season's position (10th). I am ambitious, too, and I want to be competing in the Champions League.'

At West Bromwich on Saturday he will sit in the stands as Kevin Keen takes charge of the team for the first and final time, but the real work will begin ahead of Zola's first game at the helm against Newcastle the following Saturday.

That is when he will come up against former Chelsea team-mate Dennis Wise, now executive director (football) at St James' Park.

'My English has been getting better and it's because I haven't been around Dennis for a while,' he explained with customary humour.

That is one discipline the new manager mastered without Wise.

Now for another.

n.ashton@dailymail.co.uk

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New West Ham manager Zola promises to spread some joy and bring entertaining football to Upton Park